Long time lurker, new member - saying Hello! and looking for some advice

[Cuso]

Hi fellow reefers. Long time hobbyist, lurker of the forums and finally new supporting member here! Looking forward to start connecting with my fellow hobbyists in the area.

My main system was a 46g Bowfront I had running for over 12 years, kept many different things over time but lack of desire to continue building out this bare-bones system put me in a bit of a stagnant phase where I didn't really want to add anything new, upgrade equipment etc. so it was mostly just maintained for a long while. Remaining livestock includes a Blue Tang, Clownfish, 6-line and a Firefish with a TON of Frogspawn colonies and one nice set of Duncans.

This system unfortunately began to meet it's end when my frame began giving way...hence the dreaded emergency transfer of everything into a 40g breeder - successful transfer including sand bed though and didn't lose a thing!

So silver lining...I got my spark back and the reef itch grabbed hold once again! Made the decision to do a full-blown (and long overdue) upgrade to a new Reefer 350 system complete with all the bells and whistles! I am ecstatic to get this thing up and running, but am running into some "logistical" issues as I'm trying to navigate this old system and what to do with it. Ideally, I'd like to do a fresh start and only bring over a couple coral frags and my fish as a start, so I think I'm looking to start getting rid of a lot of these frogspawn colonies.

So, in terms of advice: How do I go about this? How do I determine a reasonable asking price? Do I want to split into frags (never done it)? Do I want to sell the whole colonies (they vary from like...5-20+ heads)?

Thanks in advance! Looking forward to connecting with everyone! Flowery Branch area, btw

 

[york1]

When I am not sure what to price a frag I will search the forums and see what others are selling similar frags for. That give me an base line for pricing.

 

[Doberman13]

Welcome! York has a great idea of searching through the past threads and getting an idea of pricing. I know quite a few members that take corals to the Local fish stores for store credit. I would call ahead or visit them prior to negotiate pricing.

 

[90gDreams]

Welcome aboard.

As far as pricing out goes sell them all on a per head cost and frag per the buyer request, then sell the components individually to get you the most money. That will also take a couple of months realistically to clear out though. Full systems, especially ones like that based on a 40g breeder and not a rimless higher style type tank are not going to bring much at all. You might get lucky to get $300-$400 for that whole system as a package. There are nicer setups that go for not much more.

If you plan to buy frags predominately from a LFS vs. online or from members here, I'd identify the store you intend to do the most business with and negotiate a store credit for all of the frogspawn and duncans. It gets them gone instantly and gets you a jump start on restocking for "free".

 

[axbrown]

Welcome! Store credit is always an option, but they will most likely low ball you, so keep that in mind. If you do frag them, you could get much more but you of course run the risk of damaging the coral. Also, the time it takes to sell everything off needs to be considered. Personally, I would attempt to frag and trade off, you can always get more by fragging than selling the colony in my experience.